Ventilation Analysis

) Ventilation is an important aspect of any building or dwelling. It provides its inhabitants with clean, fresh air whilst also reducing the risk of mould or fungal growth due to excessive condensation and other air pollutants.

2.2) Many people in Ireland today still rely solely on natural/purge ventilation (i.e. windows, doors etc.) However, with this need for constant ventilation comes an adverse risk of unnecessary, and often costly, heat loss. With reference to: Technical Guide Document Part F – Ventilation (2009), which states “the opening of a window in a habitable room for purge ventilation may also be relied on for extract ventilation”. Installing permanent ventilation devices in each habitable room and also ‘wet’ rooms (i.e. bathroom, utility room) will ensure any undesirable draughts or excessive air movements will be kept to a minimum thus reducing any unnecessary heat loss.

2.3) In recent years a range of mechanical ventilation systems with heat recovery (MVHR) have entered the Irish market. These systems are designed to recover up to 95% of the heat normally lost through open windows, standard vents and other break-out points (i.e. extractor fans) in a building structure. Fresh air is continuously drawn into the home via a low energy heat recovery ventilation unit, located in the attic/utility area of the home. Once passed through a heat exchanger within the ventilation system, the warm, clean, filtered air is distributed around the home through a series of ducts which are run to each habitable room (i.e. bedrooms, living room). In addition to this the air from wet rooms, such as bathrooms and utility areas, is continuously extracted and filtered back through the heat recovery ventilation unit. The heat from the ext...

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...efficient within the home even further (Rain water recovery systems discussed in section 1.4 etc.). I feel that if these documents were updated more often to accommodate the introduction of new technologies that they would perhaps be more accurate and thus provide a better guideline for homeowners.

Introduction:

In this assignment I will discuss the role the Technical Guide Documents effect the use of energy within the home. I examine how new technologies in the construction sector can play a significant role in increasing the efficiency of energy use throughout the home. I look at the application of these technologies, such as: (rain water recovery systems, mechanical ventilation systems with heat recovery and triple glazed, low-e windows). I also suggest possible shortcomings in the Technical Guide Documents and possible areas in which they could be amended.